Page 268 - September 23 to 24 Important Chinese Art Christie's NYC

Fig. 1. Bronze zun, Han dynasty. After Xiqing Gujian, compiled in 1749, vol. 11, no. 29.
圖一 漢鳩車尊， 載於《西清古鑑》，1749年，卷十一，編號29。

PROPERTY FROM THE BETTY I. FLEMING TRUST
~979
A RARE CLOISONNÉ ENAMEL ARCHAISTIC 'WHEELED' This rare vessel appears to have been based on a very similar bronze vessel
PHOENIX-FORM VASE, ZUN depicted in the bronze catalogue Xiqing Gujian, compiled in 1749. (Fig. 1) It
QIANLONG PERIOD (1736-1795) is in vol. 11, no. 29, of the 1908 edition, and illustrated by B. Quette (ed.) in
Cloisonné: Chinese Enamels from the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, New
The vessel is in the shape of a phoenix gripping an axle with its claws between
York, 2011, p. 89. As with the present vessel, the flanges do not appear to be
two stationary spoked wheels and further supported by a smaller wheel
truly notched, but made to appear so. The shape of the bird, decoration on
inserted into the tail. The body is decorated with archaistic scrolls and wide
the body, and shape of the wheel spokes are all similar. A late Ming dynasty
bands of key fret outlining the under-turned tail. The wings have blue feathers,
version of this vessel in bronze is in the National Palace Museum, Taiwan,
and a pair of green, archaistic bird scrolls in relief flank a taotie mask on
and illustrated in Through the Prism of the Past, Taipei, 2003, p. 174, pl. III-42.
the breast. A pseudo-notched flange that centers the head, neck and body
matches the four flanges on the trumpet-shaped vase which rises from the
Wheeled bird-form vessels executed in cloisonné appear to have appealed
center of the back.
to the craftsmen of the Qianlong period, as evidenced by others of varying
11¬ in. (29.5 cm.) high, hardwood stand, Japanese wood box type that have been published. Two dated to the Qianlong period are also
illustrated by B. Quette op. cit., p. 269, no. 88, in the Brooklyn Museum, and
$80,000-120,000 no. 89, in the Philadelphia Museum of Art, which has an inscribed four-
character Qianlong mark. Another vessel of this type is illustrated in Enamel
PROVENANCE: Ware in the Ming and Ch'ing Dynasties, National Palace Museum, Taipei,
Acquired in Asia in the mid-1940s, and thence by descent.
1999, no. 70. See, also, the two vessels illustrated by H. Brinker and A. Lutz
BETTY I. FLEMING信託基金珍藏
in Chinese Cloisonné: The Pierre Uldry Collection, The Asia Society Galleries,
清乾隆 掐絲琺瑯仿古饕餮紋鳩車尊 New York, 1989, nos. 257 and 258. An almost identical cloisonné enamel zun
from the collection of David B. Peck III was sold at Christie's New York, 18
來源:
September 2014, lot 621. The inspiration for all of these vessels would have
1940年代中期購藏於亞洲，後家族傳承。 been bronze zun in the shape of a standing bird with downward-curved tail
made during the Western Zhou period, none of which, however, had wheels.
An identical cloisonné phoenix-form vase previously in the collection of
David B. Peck III was sold at Rivers of Color: Cloisonné Enamels from Private
American Collections, Christie’s New York, 17 September 2014, lot 62.